Recipes

Drinks

Wrap your lips round a Whiskey Tango

Rye’s return has been a boon for drinkers seeking a strong, spicy spirit to strengthen their stirred drinks. But there’s other uses for it, like this long drink — the time for which is right now. With spring upon us, the sun returns and brings back some heat. It’s Sydney Bar Week, too, and you’re going to indulge in a spot of daytime drinking (if you know what’s good for you)

Here’s seven 10-second cocktails to speed up your service

Working fast isn’t about working hard, it’s about working smart. The craft cocktail renaissance has brought us many fine things: old, forgotten recipes, timeless drinks, a renewed sense of professionalism behind the bar. But as bartenders have learnt more about what they serve, new techniques and more variations on a Manhattan than I’ve had hot dinners, so too has the queue at the bar grown.

How to make Trader Vic’s Mai Tai

There’s no secret that drinking leads to everything from little lies to egregious exaggeration; but perhaps there’s no stories quite like those that sprung up around the tall tales of tiki culture.

Classic: the Dubonnet Cocktail

Quinquinas. These under-appreciated, herbal, bitter wine-based drinks might seem a little dowdy, but they pack a lot of flavour. Oh, and they are downright delicious when mixed, like in this Dubonnet Cocktail.

Here’s 5 liqueur cocktails worth stepping back in time to revisit

Much like it did to corduroy and flares, the ‘70s threatened to ruin liqueurs (and liqueur cocktails) for everyone. Whilst calls for B52s may have gone the way of the dodo, here’s a selection of drinks that we think that, with a tweak or two (and, in the case of the Hurricane, the right place) could use a revisit.

Mixing with Port: the Chicago Fizz

Port has found its way in to cocktails since the days of Harry Johnson and Jerry Thomas, with mentions of port-based drinks in both the Bon Vivants Companion and a healthy 36 mentions in Johnson’s Bartender’s Manual. They list Port Wine Flips and Port Sangarees; Port then was a staple of the bar. Nowadays Port has fallen from favour.

Gaz Regan: A Boston Boozer for Brother Cleve

I was in Boston a couple of months back, attending the Boston Cocktail Summit. It was a grand affair that culminated, from my point of view, in me being roasted, Friars Club-style, by some of my best friends in the business. They were far too kind to me.

A drink for the hacks: The Journalist

It’s a tough time for journalists — the old media world is in tumult, print mastheads that have for many decades made the news have now become the news themselves. They could do with a drink, and this one has their name all over it.